Sharing Values, a Team Building Exercise
Dhaval Panchal
Entrepreneur, Founder - Evolve Agility | Active Board Member - Scrum Alliance
A few years ago, I was facilitating sprint retrospective for a multi-cultural team that had members of different national origins (UK, South Africa, Angola and United States). We started gathering information regarding their first sprint. I realized that this team was struggling to simply get along! We took a step back and created a focus for our retrospective. We elicited the following goal for our retrospective:
During the course of this retrospective, team members discussed how they can improve trust, respect and communication within the team. The fact that the team had individuals from different cultural background was not missed. The crowning moment during the retrospective came when one of the team members said:
“In my culture, we have to be friends, for me to do good work. In the western culture, I have to do good work, for us to be friends.”
These words have echoed in my head for a very long time. His insight has been a great learning experience for me. I have learned to acknowledge and appreciate differences in individual values. But what are these values?
Exercise: Sharing Values
Step I: Identify a pair (optional)
Ask your team members to identify someone within the team that they are comfortable with. Ensure all pairs have been identified and if there are odd numbers of people, the facilitator can pair with the lone individual. Ensure that every one has some index cards and a sharpie.
Step II: I don’t like it …
On a single index card, ask each team member to complete this statement:
“I don’t like it when someone/people …… “
Encourage each team member to write down 2-5 such statements on separate index cards.
I have found that it is easier for us to identify behaviors that we don’t like, especially when we have been at the receiving end.
Step III: Exchange Cards
After everyone is done writing, exchange all your cards with your partner.
Variation: If you have opted not to do Step I, then place all these cards in the basket/hat. Now randomly pick cards from the Basket/Hat. If you get a card that is yours, then place it back into the bucket/hat. Ensure all cards have been distributed.
Step IV: I like it …
On the back of each index card, write down a statement that will counter your partners “I don’t like it …” statement with
“I like it when someone/people….”
You will be amazed how your team member’s insight into your hot-button issue helps you recognize behavior that you will truly appreciate!
Step V: Share Values
Go around the table where each team member reads aloud a statement that begins with “I like it when …”. Take turns reading one statement per team member at a time until all statements are exhausted.
These are your team’s value statements. These statements provide a simple list of positive behaviors that are currently valued in your team.
Caution: As a facilitator/scrummaster refrain from vocalizing these statements yourself. I believe it is very important for everyone in the team to hear these positive behavioral statements from their peers.
Step VI: Team Values Chart
On a Big Visible Chart only capture statements, that begin with “I like it when …”. Radiate this information in your team area for the benefit of your team members and others who interact with your team.
This exercise takes less than 30 minutes to do. Try this exercise again after a couple of months; see how far your team’s values have evolved. As a manager/scrummaster/team member, if you feel tempted to dictate good behaviors to your team, take a deep breath and try this exercise with them. Maybe, just maybe, your team will self-organize to correct its own behavior.
P.S I suggest destroying any index cards that were used for this exercise.
Principal Agile Consultant at Allianz
8 年I like your approach Dhaval Panchal. I would definitely try this out. I have tried other variations to this: One where I facilitated a retrospective based on the Scrum Values, we wrote down the positive and areas to improve for each of them. Picked up the value with most number of sticky's on the improvement side and worked o it to come up with a list of what needs to be done to get better. The 2nd one was, write on one side of the card what you expect from your team. And on the other side, what the team can expect from you. The "what you expect from your team" becomes the improvement goals for the team as a whole, where as the "what your team can expect from you" becomes your personal improvement goals. This is very helpful for expectations setting for a team which is finding it hard to work together.
Certified Scrum Trainer
8 年I second you Dhaval, I have used similar technique to coach teams and align their focus towards team goal and team work. 1. Share your likes. 2. Share your dislikes. 3. Share your strength (thats now team's strength) 4. Share your weakness (that's now team's weakness) ' Our team values, what does it mean to value the values. Working agreement of the team to be most effective and efficient team. After the first sprint, in the sprint retrospective, I asked the team members to write the "thank you" note and read it loud and share it with the person. (each team member writes only two notes) Next I asked the team to write the feedback note, but with the first line "I would like to work with you, if you.. <followed by the feedback> " read it loud and handover. Team was organised much better.. your work has always inspired me to read more.